Fingernail polish remover



Patented Feb. 25, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I FINGERNAIL POLISH REMOVER No Drawing. Application June 30, 1934,

Serial No. 733,241

4 Claims. (Cl. 87-5) This invention relates to improvements in manicuring preparations and more especially to the type of manicuring preparations known as nail polish removers.

Hitherto, for the manufacture of these nail polish removers solvents have been employed such as ethyl acetate, acetone, butyl acetate, and various combinations of these solvents diluted with ethyl, isopropyl, or butyl alcohols. These solvents or mixtures of solvents and diluents have proved vary efiicaclous in removing a film-of lacquer from the nail but sufier from the objection that they leave the nail and surrounding cuticle in a relatively dry and brittle condition. The object of my invention is to produce a preparation which will quickly and readily soften the lacquer used for tinting finger nails yet not render the nail brittle and lifeless.

I have found, as the result of extensive study and experimentation, that the brittle condition characteristic of finger nails which have been frequently ornamented with tinted lacquers is due not to the lacquers employed, but is caused, primarily, by the use of preparations for removing worn lacquer coatings. These preparations, as is well known, contain essential ingredients which are highly solvent of conventional lacquer bases. In addition to their solvent action upon lacquer, I have discovered such preparations have the quality of leaching, from the nail itself, certain natural oils normally present within the nail, without which oils the nail becomes brittle and lifeless. Heretofore, it has been recognized and contended that preparations for removing finger nail lacquers, preliminary to recoating with fresh lacquer, should be free from traces of oil or grease of any description for the reason that the presence of such oil or grease in the preparation will result in the formation of an oily surface on the nail which will interfere with proper application and adherence of a new lacquer coating. My invention consists in the discovery that, within certain well-defined limits, certain organic oily materials are compatible, and may be incorporated with conventional lacquer solvents without impairment thereof or the deposition of a refractory oily film upon the decoated nail such as to interfere in any apparent degree with the application or adherence of a fresh lacquer coating. More particularly, however, my invention consists in the discovery and appreciation of the fact. that such a finger-nail lacquer solvent such as ethyl acetate, if modified by the incorporation of from 2% to 4% of a substance such as castor oil, will provide a preparation which is-unimpaired as an effective finger-nail lacquer solvent for use prior to recoating with lacquer, yet which is free from the nail-oil-leaching effect inherent to unmodified ethyl acetate, The phenomenon responsible for this highly desirable result is not exactly 5 understood although it appears that such a percentage of incorporated, castor oil satisfies the craving of the acetate for the natural oil present in the nail itself without reducing its affinity for the nail lacquer. 19

As illustrative of an improved oily polish remover, I use a formula of the following type: Ethyl acetate, 50 parts, odorless castor oil, 1 part and coloring matter. Such coloring matter or perfuming material may be added as desired with- 15 out materially changing the formula.

Instead of ethyl acetate alone a certain proportion of ethyl, isopropyl, or butyl alcohol or other miscible diluents may be added, or a combination of ethyl acetate and butyl acetate or other lacquer 20 solvents. Such natural oils as neats-foot oil, almond oil, cottonseed oil, olive oils, paraflin oils, or oily compounds of the following types: spermaceti, cetyl alchol, glycol stearate, triethanolamine-stearate, or magnesium oleate may be substituted for the castor oil. It is evident that other natural oils, or other esters or compounds of fatty acids may also be used in place of castor ,oil.

In the example above given I have used approximately one part of castor oil to fifty parts of solvent. This proportion may be varied as the action of the solvent is not hindered even if the oil or oil product is present up to 4%.

Having fully described my invention what I claim is: 7

1. A non-leaching finger-nail polish remover for conditioning the nails prior to lacquering, consisting essentially of a solution of lacquer solvent and non-drying nail-oftening oil in the proportion of approximately one part of oil to fifty parts of lacquer solvent, said oil, in the said proportion, having the effect of nullifying the affinity of the lacquer solvent for the natural oil of the nails without impairment of its afiinity for lacquer.

2. A non-leaching finger-nail polish remover for conditioning the nails prior to lacquering, consisting essentially of a solution of lacquer solvent and castor oil in the proportion of approximately one part of the castor oil to fifty parts of the lacquer solvent, said oil, in the said proportion, having the effect of nullifying the afiinity of the lacquer solvent for the natural oil of the nails without impairment of its afilnity for lacquer.

3. A non-leaching finger-nail polish remover for conditioning the nails prior to lacquelfin confor conditioning the nails prior to lacquering, consisting essentially of a lacquer solvent having incorporated therein approximately from 2 to 4 per cent of a non-drying nailpsoftening oil, said oil, in the percentage recited, having the efiect of nullifying the aflinity of the lacquer solvent for the natural oil of the nails without impairment of its aflinity for lacquer.

CLIFFORD E. BISHOP. 

